Russ Bruner and Jim Newsome Receive 2010 Connie Awards from Containerization & Intermodal Institute at 50th Anniversary Event

NEWARK, N.J. (Dec. 13, 2010) - The Containerization & Intermodal Institute (CII) presented 2010 Connie Awards to J. Russell Bruner, Chairman and CEO of Maersk Inc., and James I. Newsome III, President and CEO of the South Carolina State Ports Authority, at The Newark Club that also commemorated the 50th anniversary of CII.

Both of these recipients represent eclectic careers in international trade and transport, embracing several modes. Both Connie events were very special dinners honoring CII's half-century anniversary of providing education, information and networking to every sector involved in our business, said Allen Clifford, CII President.

The Newark Club event was in addition to the Connie Awards on September 30 presented in Long Beach, Calif., honoring Ronald Widdows and Jon Hemingway. The recipients were honored for their significant influence in containerization in worldwide trade and transportation, according to Mr. Clifford.

A special Founders Award was also presented to the Institute of International Container Lessors (IICL), recognizing that the founding organizations of CII were the then-fledgling container leasing companies. Steven Blust, IICL President, and Warren Serenbetz, a founding member a half-century ago, accepted the award.

Fifteen students from four New York and New Jersey-based colleges were also presented with a total of more than $90,000 in scholarships donated by industry businesses committed to ensuring the success in the future of logistics and supply chain management.

In accepting his award, Mr. Bruner noted: Globalization and global commerce is driving the world economy today; however, our industry needs to do a better job educating the stakeholders, especially the consumer on the value that our industry creates. Because the system that was created five decades ago is so efficient, most of the consumers have little understanding how important our industry is to the health of the U.S. economy. He added, I believe that organizations such as the Containerization & Intermodal Institute play an important role in this.

Russ Bruner was appointed Chairman, Maersk Inc., the world's largest container carrier, in January 2010. He was named Executive Vice President of the A.P. Moller-Maersk Group in 2006 and assumed the position of President & CEO, Maersk Inc. in September 2004. In June of 2001, Mr. Bruner was named Senior Vice President of Maersk Inc. responsible for managing Maersk's liner services to and from North, Central and South America as well as the Caribbean. Mr. Bruner joined Maersk Inc. in 1989.

Jim Newsome said in his acceptance remarks: Container shipping is an amazing industry. From a humble start in 1956, it has grown to be the backbone of world trade, with the movement of over 150 million TEUs of cargo today. Shipping was a global business long before it was fashionable to brag about being a global business. He continued, There would be no globalization, no off-shoring of manufacturing, and no economic progress without it. We should all remember this--- it is an absolutely strategic industry, which we all too often approach way too tactically.

Jim Newsome became President and CEO of the South Carolina State Ports Authority in September 2009. He was previously President of Hapag-Lloyd (America), Inc., which is part of the world's fifth-largest ocean shipping company, where he was responsible for all activities in North America and Latin America. Previously, he was Senior Vice President of Area Southeast, based in Atlanta, Ga., for 12 years. Prior to joining Hapag-Lloyd in 1997, Mr. Newsome was with Nedlloyd Lines from 1987 to 1997. He was Executive Vice President of the Americas for Nedlloyd Lines and President of Nedlloyd Lines (USA) Corporation.

In addition to the Connie Awards, CII carried out its industry education mission by presenting scholarships to maritime academy cadets. This includes awarding the Thomas B. Crowley Sr. Memorial Scholarship to midshipmen at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, funded and managed by Crowley Maritime Corp.; the New York Container Terminal Scholarship to a cadet at the SUNY Maritime College at Fort Schuyler, funded and managed by New York Container Terminal; the Richard A. Simpson Scholarship to a Kings Point cadet, which is funded by Connie proceeds and is managed by CII; and a BSY Associates Scholarship to a college student studying logistics, which is funded by BSY Associates, Inc. of Holmdel, NJ; and other scholarships to students at Rutgers University and Bloomfield College donated by Ceres Terminals Inc., Evergreen Line, Maersk Inc., Maersk Line Limited, Mediterranean Shipping Company, South Carolina State Ports Authority, and The Journal of Commerce.

About CII

Containerization & Intermodal Institute (CII), a non-profit organization founded in 1960, promotes industry awareness, preserves the history of intermodalism, and engages scholarly interest in the field by organizing educational conferences and seminars, serving as an information resource, providing networking opportunities, offering career guidance, arranging internships and facilitating scholarships. For more information, visit www.containerization.org.